To regain our true lives
by Walpurgisnacht's laugh
Summary: "Only the Raven and Falcon united will regain the voices of the five clans." That prophecy will lead to the doom of the clans, or a new rise, now, let us follow the darkest star yet not poisoned, and the scarred bird yet still strong.*Chapter titles in Latin*(First in the flowers of flight arc)
1. Prologus: Codex mortem

Light and dark. A choice.

A choice that would destroy the clans if wrong.

It will make them live, or make them die.

Even though the new code has risen.

The old one must return.

the new code is this.

1. The elders must be fed last.

2. The warriors will be fed first.

3. Going against the leaders word will result in death.

4. The kits must not play, that is a weakness.

5. The apprentices must be trained one at a time.

6. The youngest warriors will sleep in the warmest space.

7. Kits must be three moons old to become apprenticed.

8. She cats will have tom mentors.

9. Toms will have she cat mentors.

10. Running away in battle will result in exile.

11. To win a fight, you must kill.

The new clans are brutal, Starclan weeps for them.

But there is one, who strives to know the old code, the code that kept one alive, to become an elder.

She will rise, and be strong.

**Sound good?**


	2. Et percussit grando in corvo stellam

**I will have chapter 1 now!**

Ravenkit lifted her head, She looked around the warm den, her mother was curled around her.

"Duskflower, when will we get to eat?" Ravenkit was hungry, it was leaf bare, there was little prey.

"I don't know, little one, I don't know." Duskflower looked down on her kit with love, but sadness.

"When will Lightpelt come back" Ravenkit asked her mother.

"At sunhigh" Lightpelt was Ravenkits father.

"Wha-whats going on?" Falconkit asked, bleary eyed with sleep.

"Hush Falconkit, go back to sleep" Duskflower said softly, nuzzling her kit.

Ravenkit lowered her head to the ground, and slept.

* * *

"Let all cats old enough to win a battle gather here beneath the high ledge for clan meeting!"

Ravenkit, and her brother, Falconkit stepped out of the den, to find that Duskflower was waiting for them.

"Come, my kits, you re to be apprenticed."

"Ravenkit, come forward" Hailstars eyes were cruel.

She strode forward, cautious, but proud.

"You will be known as Ravenpaw, your mentor will be," He paused, a glitter in is eyes,"Me"

She stared, it was now her doom to become leader.

_Oh Starclan, why? is it my destiny to become leader? why? why? _

"Well?" Hailstar said, a cruel glitter in his eyes.

"I am grateful of the honor you have given to me by taking me as your apprentice, I thank you"

He smiled, a cruel smile,"stand with the apprentices, _Ravenpaw _"

"Falconkit, come forward, your mentor will be Hollyspring"

Falconpaw dipped his head to Hollyspring, and stepped back.

_Oh Starclan, what is my fate?_

**Glad to update!  
**


	3. Bone sanguinis

**Three reviews and two follows already? Wow! **

Ravenpaw stood beside Falconpaw, they both knew what was to come.

The scaring.

Hailstar strolled forward, almost casually, but they knew that he was about to do what they knew would come, he would do it.

Hailstar smirked, unsheathed his claws, and slashed them across Ravenpaw's leg.

_Starclan this hurts! Why did he slash so deep? _

She looked down, blood was puddled on the ground around her leg.

He then turned to Falconpaw, and slashed his claws down his back leg.

Falconpaws eyes widened, and he squeezed them shut, trembling.

Ravenpaw looked at his leg, and saw bone through ragged, torn, fur.

Hailstar had scraped her brothers bone.

The bone was cracked, and dented, and ruined.

He was an exile now.

He had to survive without the help of his clanmates.

Perhaps he would return, after he had healed.

Hollyspring was to go with him.

"Do not fret for your brother, Hollyspring will help him"

Ravenpaw turned around, Brakenfoot was behind her, smiling.

"Thanks, I hope he'll come back someday" Ravenpaw told the young warrior.

"I'm sure he will! Your brother is strong, you'll see"

"I hope you're right" Ravenpaw said, with a sidelong glance at Hailstar.

**That wasn't foreshadowing at all! I don't Own Brackenfoot, Call Me Streamers does.  
**


	4. Merum mortis venatione Corvus

**Yes! Longest chapter as of yet!**

"Up! Down! Across! Belly swipe! Throat claw!"

Ravenpaw did all these moves to a bush, before long it was just a tattered as of leaves and twigs.

Hailstar looked down at her, "If you cannot get the throat claw right you'll be an apprentice for three leaf bares." he said, ready to 'reprimand' her.

"Yes Hailstar, I will try harder in training to banish the unworthy of life." _But I just got apprenticed today, I cannot do everything right! _Ravenpaw turned, and swiped her claws down a tree, marking it with four long rents, telling that it was _her _tree.

"Good. Practice on that deathberry bush over there, destroy it, uproot it, and get the berries for Ashleaf." he said, nodding with an air of smugness that infuriated Ravenpaw.

_Pretend that bush is Hailstar, pretend he killed Falconpaw! _She thought, as she tore away at it, clawing in almost perfect coordination.

"Better, come over here to practice hunting." Hailstar said loudly, turning, and beckoning with his tail for her to follow him.

The two of them emerged into a clearing on the top of a hill, overlooking the lake on one side, the forest on another, Thunderclan on another, and Shadowclan territory on the last.

With an intake of breath, she looked around, surveying her home, on the other side of the lake she thought she could see the moor.

"Be careful, we took this from Thunderclan recently, I can still smell the sweet scent of blood." Hailstar lifted his head and breathed deeply, a look of happiness on his face.

_What kind of civilized cat loves the scent of blood? _

Blood spattered the ground and bushes, giving the place a scent of death and despair masking everything else.

"Well? Show me you hunting crouch." Hailstar commanded, lifting his paw to enforce it.

Inwardly shuddering, Ravenpaw crouched down, trying to mimic what what the older apprentices showed off to each other.

"Wrong!" Hailstar yowled, shoving her limbs into the right place.

Ravenpaw winced, his claws had been unsheathed and she now had scratches.

"Pounce on that branch, claws unsheathed, snap in in two." He said, gesturing to a small branch in front of her.

Leaping forward, Ravenpaw landed on the center of the branch, snapping it in two.

The rest of the day continued like that, Hailstar ordering, and Ravenpaw doing as he wished, afraid for her life, ready to run if she had to.


	5. Numquid nocere ornamentum?

**Hi! Longish chapter!**

The stars shone like soft eyes in the velvety darkness of the night, masking the fears, comforting all who looked up them.

_I wonder if Falconpaw and Hollyspring are up there, killed by fox's, or badgers._

Ravenpaw shuddered at the thought, lowering her head, she crept into the apprentice den.

"Hello, Ravenpaw, couldn't sleep?" A voice said from the darkness in the back of the den.

"I could, I was looking at our ancestors, Birchpaw." Ravenpaw said, dipping her head to the pale gray tom.

"You can sleep next to me, here." Birchpaw said, moving over and piling some extra moss next to his nest.

Ravenpaw moved carefully through her sleeping clan mates, and settled down in the pile of moss, resting her head on her paws.

Birchpaw moved closer to her, keeping each other warm in the chill air of the night.

* * *

"Let all cats strong enough to kill their own enemies gather here beneath high-branch for a clan meeting!"

Ravenpaw lifted her head from the mouse she was eating, and got up, leaving the mouse behind her.

"Today we will begin the assessment of the three best apprentices, by attacking Thunderclan, as is tradition for our clan."

Ravenpaw jerked her head back, knowing one of the apprentices was her, as she was now the oldest apprentice in the clan.

"Ravenpaw, Birchpaw, Streampaw, Brackenfoot, Poolclaw, Ashpelt, Blossompelt, Roseclaw, Frogpelt, Oakfur, Pineheart and me will go on this mission, the rest will stay behind and do as they wish."

With that, Hailstar leaped down from the High-Branch, and headed towards the camp entrance.

Ravenpaw reluctantly followed him out, keeping her claws unsheathed.

"Are you not excited? Our first battle!" Streampaw said to Ravenpaw, who was walking head down, tail almost touching the ground.

"No, and I never will be, I'd rather go hunt or even just train!" Ravenpaw whispered, wary of speaking too loud.

* * *

The large patrol halted by the Thunderclan border, and by a signal from Hailstar, all the warriors but one darted into the bushes and trees.

Ravenpaw stood, tense, ready for battle, Birchpaw on her left, Streampaw on her right, both in the same stance as her, tense, claws half unsheathed.

Three kits, crouching low, crept out of the bushes, unaware that they were about to join the Stars.

Hailstar, and his deputy, Pineheart, leaped forward, killing two of the kits in one blow.

the third yowled pitifully, scrambling backwards, but Hailstar cut through its throat, waking over its corpse, he crept deep into Thunderclan territory.

* * *

Ravenpaw stood on the brink of the Thunderclan camp, opening her mouth, she yowled a challenge, leaped onto a rotting tree in the center of camp, and clawed a small she cat who was also on the tree.

Ravenpaw leaped down, ready to fight.

"Apprentices! Attack the medicine den!" Hailstar yowled, as he cut through the neck of a large tom.

"Father!" the small she cat yowled, her voice high with fear.

The she-cat was smaller than Ravenpaw, who was strangely small, small as a new apprentice.

_Oh Starclan, did I attack a kit? _Ravenpaw thought, as she dashed towards a crack in the rock with a bramble curtain screening it from the main part of camp.

As she and the other two apprentices burst in, a tall, slender she-cat leaped backwards, the herbs falling from her mouth.

With a snarl, Streampaw leaped forward, plunging her teeth into the she-cats throat, as Birchpaw and Ravenpaw destroyed the herbs, all but the deathberrys, they did not want to find out one night that they had been killed in their nest.

Ravenpaw felt claws rake down her side, spinning around, she faced a huge tom, paw raised, ready to kill.

She lifted her paw, and raked it across the toms eyes.

"Return to camp, Shadowclan, Return to camp!" Hailstar's yowl hit her ears faintly, as she ran towards the entrance.

_Did I just blind the Thunderclan leader?_

**YES SHE DID!  
**


	6. Caelum in se fervet

**Update time!  
**

_A shadowy figure came, ripping the shield of darkness, the revealing light poured in-_

"Thunderclan is attacking! Wake up! They have come for revenge!"

Ravenpaw leaped up, to see that the wall of the apprentice den was torn, and vines swung loosely in the wind, as more cats tore away at it, small yowls told her that they were doing the same thing to the nursery.

_Oh Starclan, the kits!_

She leaped to her paws, snarling, she lashed out at a pale gray tom clawing away yet more of the den.

"Apprentices! get to the nursery if you want the kits to live!"

Ravenpaw jumped through the gap, spun, and raced to the nursery prepared to face the worst.

But she never got there.

Hailstar stopped her.

"Get help from Riverclan, five warriors have been killed, we need help. Go!" He said, as a small she-cat slashed down his side, causing him to cry out in pain.

Ravenpaw spun, and dashed to the camp entrance, terrified that he would die.

As she dashed through the forest, she was aware of a drizzle, then a downpour.

_Oh Starclan, Shadowclan does not know how to fight in the rain, they will be killed!_

But then, a piercing memory stabbed her, that was not her own...

_"As soon as we master one fight technique he comes up with another!"_

_..."Dovepaw! Don't go there!"  
_

_"Are you all right?"_

_..._

_"Maybe a hardy warrior could climb them, if the branches were low down enough on the tree, but the kits and elders..."_

_"Its not as if you live in the trees, Tawnypelt!"_

_..._

Ravenpaw's eyes jerked open, and she knew what to do.

She leaped up the tree, and could have sworn she heard two voices behind her, then on either side.

"She is strong, this one, the sky is burning within her."

"The stars are her friend, this should not be her home."

She blinked, and could have sworn she saw two pale, cats, one tortoiseshell, one dark tabby.

But her paw slipped, and she fell, down, down, down, onto a rock.

Darkness and pain seemed to flow through her body, and she knew no more.

**So... shiz got real.**


	7. amicum rat

"Cat save us, we save cat."

"Cat die! Cat kill us too!"

An argument was going on over the limp form of Ravenpaw, while she ran in a wild and feverish dream of sharp teeth and great mountains.

"Quiet, we kill cat attack this cat home, take cat back to cat home cat live!" A huge rat said, more grunting then squeaking.

"No! Cat kill brother!" A smaller rat squealed, scrabbling at the ground.

"No! No! Falconpaw!" Raven yowled, twisting around, blood falling from her jaw, and she was still.

"Cat dream of rat-friend, we save rat-friends friend" The huge rat said, twisting around.

The three rats ran towards Shadowclan camp, ready to kill the cats invading them.

Meanwhile, Ravenpaw was in a whirlwind of dreams, hazy with fog, and filled with voices.

_"Leave the pines..."_

_"Reach the sky..."_

_"Only you..."_

_"Find the Falcon..."_

_"Only the Raven and the Falcon united will regain the voices of the five clans..."_

_"They will become the star and scar..."_

_"They will be strong enough to lift the shadow..."_

_"And to leave the darkness of their clan..."_

_"Forever."_

* * *

"The rats! I told you they would come! The rats!"

The three rats dove onto the back of the ThunderClan deputy, and bit him, until he fell, covered in wounds.

"Rat-friend's friend hurt, in forest of tall trees."

Streampaw and Birchpaw ran out of camp, following the smallest rat, in order to save their wounded, possibly dying friend...

**Cliffhanger! Maybe I'll do a cliffhanger where Hailstar is hanging from a cliff, and Ravenpaw is his deputy, and does not know ifshe should kill him or not...**

**That was a spoiler, I'm doing that, without a doubt.**


	8. Sanguinem corvum

Ravenpaw opened her eyes, the light was dim and herb-scent filled her nose, along with a sharp scent that could only be pine needles.

"Wha-what happened?" She mewed, struggling to a sitting position.

In response, a paw lashed out, knocking her back and marking her shoulders with blood.

"You fell, and you will be punished. Thanks to you Hailstar is on his ninth life." A voice hissed in her ear, and claws raked across her shoulders again, only this time deeper.

"What are you doing? Fight back, or are you just a weak little _kittypet_?" The last word was filled with scorn, and it angered Ravenpaw to no end.

She lashed out with her front paw, and she saw through slitted eyes blood her jet-black paw turn dark red.

"What were you saying? No one in our clan has a drop of kittypet blood in our pure veins!" Ravenpaw hissed, although doubt stirred her heart, making the den around her seem to fade a bit.

_How can we be sure? The myths of old tell of a great cat born of flame, yet was a..._

_Kittypet._

She let her paw drop, and she stood, although a deep cut on her jaw stung, and her shoulders were stained red.

"Barkfeather, I have never met a lowlier cat, although you deem yourself as mighty, you are but a spot of bark in my nest, just a trifle to toss away and leave behind."

The dark brown tom crouched, and looked up at her, and for a moment, instead of a small and wounded apprentice, and tall and great leader stared down at him, and fire reflected in her dark green eyes, but the green still flickered behind it, like a burning forest.

But then she turned, and walked out, pausing before she stepped out, knowing that soon she would flee at the claws of her angry clanmates.

* * *

"Mouse brain!"

"Fox-heart!"

"Fight back! We'll kill you if you don't!"

Ravenpaw lashed out desperately, attempting to defend herself.

"Stop! Surely you can test her somehow? Hailstar, please don't kill my daughter!" Duskflower tried to block the blows her daughter was receiving, but to no avail.

"Stop." Hailstar said, his voice rang our into the clearing, all of the cats attacking Ravenpaw halted, and backed away.

"Poolclaw. Find a rogue." He said, turning his head to the young warrior.

"Yes, but will a kittypet do? There are five in the twoleg den." Poolclaw responded, his pale green eyes narrowing to slits.

"No. Take four cats with you and find a Riverclan patrol. Kill all of them but one, I want that one here." Hailstar hissed, his stormy blue eyes reflecting the rays of the sun in its downward spiral to the horizon.

Within an hour, four cats of the five cats had returned, with a scarred warrior in their midst, with blood dripping from his claws.

"You will never kill me! Never! I killed one of your own and you still took me! I killed a young warrior1 Ah, I shall never live to relish the death of ShadowClan." The warrior was blabbering on, and Ravenpaw could now see the stump where a paw had been, a ragged scar sealed it.

"Ravenpaw. You are to kill him. Should be easy, they chose the medicine cat, a former warrior.." Hailstar mewed, his eyes were cruel and narrowed to slits.

Ravenpaw stared at the the tom, she took in every detail, from his dark blue eyes to the gray pelt to the white paw.

"And what will happen if I do kill him?" She asked, her voice level.

"You will become a warrior, you have become good at fighting in these four moons you have a 'paw." Hailstar responded.

"If you do not kill him, you will be killed. By me."

_I've got to do this. But how?_

Time seemed to slow for her.

The tom leaped forward with claws outstretched, but Ravenpaw slid under him, her claws raking his belly, blood fell onto her front leg.

He stumbled as he landed, but spun around and tore away half of Ravenpaw's ear, and she cried out in pain, lashing out as she did so, catching the toms neck and landing a blow on the side of it, and he staggered away, snarling.

Ravenpaw hissed, and did the most basic move; she swiped his belly from the front.

Normally, it would only wound, but this time, since he was already injured, and she struck so deep that her claws hooked on the edge of his ribs before she pulled them out, her paw red.

"Die." She whispered, leaning in close to the tom as he fell, and bit his neck.

She heard a snap.

Ravenpaw stepped back, only now realizing what she had done.

_I hope he had an apprentice._

"Very good. Very, _very _good." Hailstar said, his mouth twisting into a half smile, his fangs glinted in the now setting sun.

Ravenpaw narrowed her eyes, and then she said;

"Hailstar, may I please roll in the grass outside camp?"

"You may not. It is tradition to have your pelt stained red at your warrior ceremony. Then you may clean in your vigil.


	9. Quisque fuga

**I have to thank Song Of Falling Feathers for reviewing three chapters in a row, thank you!**

Falconpaw froze as he heard a howl deeper into the abandoned twolegplace, and then a howl too near for comfort.

He ran into the shelter, not daring to keep hunting.

"Hollyspring!" He mewed, as quietly as he could.

"What is it, Falconpaw?" She asked, jerking awake and rolling over to face him.

"Wolves! One farther away, and one very close!"

"We need to get up the big-oak. Now."

"But I hurt my paw!"

"Then I'll carry you." Hollysprings's voice was firm, and she grabbed her apprentice, and tossed him over her back so that he was less of a load.

Falconpaw winced with every step she took.

_Is this what I'll always be? Just a load to carry? I don't want to be that! I want to be a warrior!  
_

As Hollyspring clambered up the tree, his leg began to bleed again, it had never healed entirely.

When they were on a branch, the two wolves appeared, foam on their jaws.

"StarClan help us." Hollyspring murmured.

Falconpaw hung on for life, sinking his teeth into the branch.

Hollyspring backed up, then leaned forward, and that proved to be a fatal mistake.

She slipped, and fell, her claws stretched wide in a final show of defiance.

But then the wolves leaped on her terrified form, and Falconpaw turned his head away, shedding silent tears.

"Duskflower. Ravenpaw. Lightpelt. I will return, I never wanted to leave you, I have always earned for home, and now...and now is the time to may return to it, though I am weaker then a flightless bird." He whispered, and sat up straight on the branch, then stood.

The next few hours seemed like dream to him, he went around the tree, over twoleg dens, following only his instinct.

He gave a cry of relief when he saw the treeline very nearby.

_Thank StarClan! _He thought as he leaped down, forgetting about his twisted paw.

To those daring rogues who watched him, he seemed like a dark arrow, that was going to pierce the heart of the wretched clans, and regain the clan cats true lives.

He ran all the way into camp, and was greeted by a cry of joy.

"Falconpaw!" Ravenpaw said, the blood somehow slid out of her fur, as she went to her brother.

"Ravenpaw." Falconpaw whispered, partly out of joy, and partly out of shock.

His beloved sister was now tall and slender, not the stocky apprentice who he had known his whole life.

* * *

"Ravenpaw, do you promise to uphold and defend the warrior code, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do." Ravenpaws voice was level, though she had hidden a tremble.

"Then from this moment onward, you will be known as Ravenflower. StarClan honors your truth and loyalty. You wil keep a silent vigil in the center of camp to night."

Ravenflower lifted he head to the stars, and looked up, wondering if Falconpaw was there.

But then she turned, and to her shock and joy, Falconpaw burst into camp.

"Falconpaw!" She said and ran to her brother.

"Ravenpaw." Falconpaw whispered.

"Nay, Ravenflower."

Falconpaw's eyes widened, and he held back a cry of joy and wonder.

"Falconpaw, come here."

Filled with wonder, Falconpaw went over to Hailstar, who leaped down to look at him.

"Falconpaw, do you promise to defend your clan and the warrior code, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do." Falconpaw had been waiting for this moment since he first opened his eyes.

"Then from this moment onward, you will be known as Falconwing, StarClan honors you courage and loyalty, and we welcome you both as full warriors of ShadowClan."

"Ravenflower! Falconwing! Ravenflower! Falconwing!" The clan called the two warriors names, and their voices lifted any doubt that lay upon the two young warriors.


	10. Errat in umbris, ardens robur libertatis

"The sun has risen, you may sleep." A voice came from behind the two young warriors, making them jump.

Ravenflower spun around, while Falconwing just glanced over his shoulder and looked back out of camp.

"P-pineheart!" Ravenflower stammered, and crouched in a position of respect.

"That is no longer a necessity. You are a warrior, and that is what we welcome you as." His voice was icy cold, though still deep, and his eyes seemed to be an echo of his voice, their clear blue slightly clouded over by a darker shade.

"Follow me, you shall sleep in the center of the den, as our newest warriors.

As he spoke, the warm rays of the sun sliced through the layer of frost, warming the three cats as they walked into the warriors den, still warm after the days warmth.

"Sleep. I shall wake you at sunhigh." Pineheart tuned, and almost sadly, he lay down in his nest of leaves and moss.

* * *

"Wake. It is time for the testing."

A voice jerked Falconwing out of his dream, making him do the battle move he was doing in his dream to the ground, and a deep score appeared in the soft and sandy ground in the den, the frost had crept in inn the early hours of sunrise, when a rainstorm had battered the dens with blinding sheets of rain. leaking into them, and in all of the dens the crying of wet kits could be heard.

"Pineheart." Falconwing said, regaining his sense, and jolting out of the jaws of wolves in his dream.

"Ravenflower. Wake, you have much to do today." The older warrior bent his head and spoke in the young she-cats ear, and Falconwing could have sworn that he saw a look of regret in his eyes, making the young warrior step back, for that look was so strongly overwhelmed in an instant with a look of pure hate.

_Ravenflower, I'll always stand by you, I'll never let him hurt you, even if it kills me, I swear._

Ravenflower stirred, and looked up, her eyes were dull for some reason, and only a faint glimmer of their light remained in those deep green eyes, and it stirred him deeply with an overwhelming sense of worry when he saw her like this, filled with some great sorrow deeper then the deepest of rivers for some reason unknown to him, and perhaps even herself.

Falconwing turned his head away, cursing himself for the tears appearing at the corners of his eyes.

He saw Ravenflower stand out of the corner of his eye, the tall she-cat seemed to almost crouch in some overwhelming despair.

He summoned his courage to face Pineheart afterwards, and stepped up to his older sister.

"Ravenflower, what is wrong?" Falconwing murmured, touching his nose to her forehead.

"You don't want to know. Trust me. It is worse then any living thing we shall ever face in our so short lifetimes." She said, and her voice trembled, but not with fear, but complete and utter horror at something so vast that it overwhelmed even her.

"Was it-was it the-the Dark Forest?" He asked her, his voice dropping to a whisper, so quiet that even Pinehearts sharp ears would not hear.

"No. It was worse. Much worse, they could have wiped out the Dark Forest in a single blow, and still be strong, if not stronger, even after they defeated the forest of darkness, that even the strongest could not defeat without death." Her voice was dark, shadowed by an ominous threat that filled Falconwing with a consuming fear for the clans, whichever clan it may be, his own, or even the distant one that old tales told of.

"Come. Forget that dream, you must use all the strength you have for this." He said, pulling himself away from the depths of despair and into the light planes of slight happiness, or at least, still in the shadow, but not as much, only the shadow that had been on the clans since the death of Snowstar, ancient leader of ThunderClan.

"I shall try. I shall try until my limbs break and memory is lost of the old code forever."

Falconwing was staggered by the fierce loyalty and emotion in his sisters voice, suddenly, she drew herself up tall, and looked around; Pineheart had long since left, the moment Ravenflower had lifted her head he had drew away from the dense shadow of the warriors den and gone into the bleak sunlight that was the open camp.

"Come. Let us meet the challenges that await us out there. In the camp. For leadership. And the code." Ravenflowers voice was firm, and when she looked at him a bit of the old light was restored in her dark green eyes, as they reflected his own face, and he saw faint traces of tears in his own dark fur, staining it with the deeper shadow that often filled the hearts of the more prone to fighting cats that dishonored the stars.

_Like Hailstar. _He realized with a dark horror that he saw reflected in his sisters eyes, along with a burning determination; To rid the clans of the poison staining their paths once and for all.

"Come. Let us begin this dark journey here, in this den, in this camp filled with the darkness that has stained our hearts since the tales of old were the dark truth, and the path of light only opening to those few who were open to the stars. Swear to never succumb to this dark poison. Swear, and never break that promise, or I fear what will become of the clans. Nay, the world." Ravenflower lifted her clear gaze to meet his, her eyes were filled with a fire that he had never seen before in her, and a determination that not even the heroes of old could match.

"I swear. I promise to defend the ways of old, even at the cost of my life." He whispered, and knew what a great step he was taking, from the dark path of the shaded forest to the clear rivers of the sky that was the true home of all clan cats.

"Thank you, dear brother, may the faded stars blaze once again with their strong light of old, may they return from the darkest reaches of the old clans, that we must bring back and let them shine again, not to wander in the dark reaches of the Dark forest-nay, the shadows of BloodClan again, in the future, nor past, however far ahead it may be."

He felt a fire blazze through him, and he set his jaw, moved his shoulders back, stood tall, and silently swore to himself that he would never stray far from her side. Ever, even if it cost him his life.

"Come, let us see what fate may bring us." Ravenflower turned, and walked swiftly out of the den.

_May she always shine as the brightest yet darkest star. Forever._

With that thought, he stepped out, and let the bleak light shine in his fur, wondering if the heroes of the ancient clans hade to make a promise this vast also.


	11. Lacerato grandinis

Ravenflower strode forward, her pace steady, her head held high, her eyes filled with determination.

She was aware of Falconwing striding behind her, the ground-or mud, sucked her paws in, and she pulled them out as easily as breathing, or hunting, or pulling a leaf from a bush.

"Good, now come, and fight for leadership." Hailstar's voice rang out clearly.

The faces around her seemed to blur into a tunnel of browns and blacks and grays, but one figure was silhouetted in white, at the end of the tunnel, although the outline was clear, a murky mix of colors of death swirled within it.

She blinked, and the figure was Hailstar, his eyes just as icy as always.

"Greetings. I trust that your den was sound?" Falconwing said from behind her, and Ravenflower felt a growing horror fill her.

"You young warriors. Always insist on joining the stars early." Hailstar shook his head, then sprang forward, pushing Ravenflower aside like a leaf, and launching himself On Falconwing, who's eyes reflected the fear that was as deep as a tree root on the hearts of all clan cats.

Hailstars fangs reached for the young warrior neck, as Falconwing turned away, his jaws opening in a yowl of despair.

Ravenflower's jaws opened, and her back legs pushed off, and she twisted in the air, as Hailstars fangs brushed Falconwings neck.

But _he_ was pulled back, by his own apprentice, no longer a shy young warrior but a strong full-grown she-cat, who normally be deemed as weak, and a fool.

"Never hurt my kin! Never! You heartless fox-heart! I saw you! You killed kits! By StarClan, may you skulk in the shadows of the dark forest for the rest of your starless and dreary, painful nights!" Her voice echoed, and a ThunderClan patrol jerked their heads up at the sound of distant yowling.

Hailstar spun around, his jaws twisting into a hideous snarl of rage, and he lunged towards the neck of the young warrior, hissing.

"You are too attached! Weak fools!" His voice, normally flat and calm, was loud and furious, his icy tone lost to a fire of rage and blood-lust, his eyes burning with an icy flame.

Ravenflowers eyes widened, and for a moment she was far back in time.

_"Show no mercy." A ginger tom's eyes narrowed._

Her eyes narrowed, and she lunged forward, her fang tore deep in her leaders leg, causing a wound that would never heal.

_"Do you promise to defend your clan, even at the cost of your life?"_

She tore her claws down his side.

_"I do."_

She felt a stinging blow to the side of her face.

_Then from this moment onward,"_

She lunged forward, and sank her teeth into his side.

_"You will be known as..."_

She let the burning anger surge over her.

_"Fireheart."_

Hailstar threw himself forward, and gripped the young she-cats scruff, and flung her away. She hit the ground, and fell into a quiet darkness.

_"Memory."_

* * *

"Ravenflower!" Falconwing yowled, seeing his sister hit the ground, and then not get up.

_Te , amice ,_

_ Hic autem de victoria cogitandum ._

He swung his paw down Hailstar's back.  
_Gloria haec est prima ._

The huge tom spun around.  
_Te , amice ,_

_Sit celebrare victoria deinde proelio_

He felt his fangs sink into that neck, he felt the blood pour out, and as the body crumpled, he pulled back, and the light of rage died in his eyes, and they were once again calm, but in them glinted worry.

_Libera mortis. Sunt dou esse._

He stepped back, only now knowing what he had done.

_Libertas an gladius?  
_

He staggered backwards.

_Amicus noster est;_

He saw through dim eyes Birchflight kneel beside Ravenflower.

_De libertate et memorian, nisi propter spem._

He was supported by a slender but strong shoulder.

_Libertas?  
_

He whispered;"I never wanted to do it."

_Mors?_

"I know, my friend, I shall always stand beside you." The soft voice lifted him from the shadow of horror and despair.

_Geminorum,_

"I know, Streampaw."

_Unis est nostrum._

"I will always remember you as a true friend. Even when you are gone in the far future, and if I remain."

_Libera nos semper fugiet._


	12. Cinis

_"Wak_e_, little one. You are too young to join us, we will always be with you, but you must not join us."  
_

_Ravenflower looked down, and saw that her paws were filled with stars, and scarlet feathers covered them in a thin layer, and she realized that they represented blood._

"Ravenflower! Wake up!" Falconpaw said, shaking his sister, staring at the blood that soaked her shoulders and legs.

_"But its nice here. I like it. I don't want to wake up." Ravenflower said softly, she had not heard her brothers voice, the mist was so thick, and birdsong drifted around her and formed into words speaking of peace..._

"Ravenflower! Remember what I promised? Remember what I said?"

_"Don't be fooled. They just want you to fight." Ravenflower looked up, a tall silver and gray she-cat with pale blue eyes looked down at her, and her voice was firm. Ravenflower stirred._

Ravenflower moved, her limbs seemed to be empty and loose.

_"What are they?" The young black warrior asked the she-cat, moving her legs so that they were in front of her and behind her._

Falconwing saw her move, and saw her mouth twitch.

_"They are The Tribe Of Scarlet Fur. The second of the three tribes, and the strongest, stronger, even then the Dark Forest. They are the tribes Dark Forest."__ The she-cats blue eyes narrowed, and she unsheathed her claws.  
_

"Ravenflower. Stay here, Don't die." Falconwing muttered, the black she-cats heart seemed to be slowing.

_"I am truly sorry to do this." The StarClan warrior swiped her paw across Ravenflowers, pulling her from the sweet mist._

The young warrior woke for a split second, and lapsed into a deep unconsciousness again, dreamless and timeless.

_"Good. You have woken. Yet you are not safe. Once a target escapes, they will do anything to get that cat back."_

Falconwing saw his sister relax, and he himself relaxed.

_Thank StarClan. _He thought as he lift her up, and with Birchpaw's help, carried her into the medicine den.

* * *

Ravenflower opened her eyes, bu then shut them again.

_I had a dream...and there was a StarClan warrior...and she hurt my paw in order for me to wake up..._

Her eyes jerked open, and she realized that is was pitch black outside, and it was even darker in the den she was in.

It took her a moment to realize that she was aline, and that it was raining heavily.

_Great. My first day as a warrior and my brother might be dead. I already have some cats after me._

"Rest. I'm honestly surprised you lived, your paw still looks pretty bad though, and it could get infected and you could die." The last part was spoken with a lighter tone then the rest.

"Hello, Barkfeather." Ravenflower said, rolling her eyes at the old and slightly crazy medicine cat. _I just hope his apprentice won;t wake up too. Sparrowpaw is so annoying!_

As if in answer to her thought, a small, high pitched voice came from the dense shadows near the herb storage.

"Ravenflower! You're awake! But are you unhappy to hear me, I wonder." The little she-cat stepped out, her big eyes glistening and her head cocked. Sometimes it was impossible to tell her and Birchpaw apart. They looked exactly the same, were the same size, and only if the light was just right could you see the flower shape on the side of Sparrowpaws neck.

"Er.. no, I'm...glad to see you!" Ravenflower said, though her fake look of happiness to see her was very bad and unreal.

The four-moon-old apprentice's face fell, and she turned and walked away. back into the darker shadows of the den.

"Don't upset my apprentice. Got it? Shes my sisters daughter." Barkfeather hissed in her ear, turned, and walked away, his tail swinging.

_Is that the only reason you want to protect her? I can think of a few cats who needs more protecting then her._

The young warrior stood, and to anyone there, she was nothing but a small shadow moving faster then the rest as the dancing moonlight and the thin rays from the stars shifted them.

She stepped out of the den, but stayed in the shadows, and what she saw filled her heart with horror.

Dark shapes sat around a still form laying in the center of camp, and by instict the young warrior backed away, pressing herself against the edge of camp.

Two of the figures stood, and she could hear the voice of Pineheart.

"Get Ravenflower, Falconwing. Poolclaw, go with him." The small gray tom and the slender gray she-cat walked towards the medicine den.

"Don't bother. Shes not there. I would know if my own patient left."

Ravenflower winced as the voice echoed over camp.

"Then where is she?" Poolclaw asked.

"Look around you. I am not here to help look for foolish kits that run away.

"You are not one to talk, Sparrowpaw."

"Indeed."

Meanwhile, Ravenflower had walked forward, the same steady pace as that morning.


	13. Proditio Praesent

**Sorry that the chapter was not very quick in coming! **

The cats turned towards her. Pineheart strolled forward.

"So, Ravenflower, I assume you know whats going on?" He mewed calmly

"N-no Pineheart." The young warrior responded.

"You will become leader tonight. Hurry, the moon is near setting."

"Come on." Barkfeather walked up, and began leading Ravenflower to the entrance to camp.

That night turned out horrible.

* * *

The tom and the she-cat arrived at the Moonpool just before sunrise.

"Lay down and touch the water with your nose." Ravenflower did as she was told, and shuddered at the shock of the icy water.

Almost instantly, she felt a wave of tiredness come over her, and she closed her eyes to the last rays of moonlight.

_"Ravenflower, open your eyes."_

_Ravenflower did as she was told, and was surprised to see Lightpelt looking down at her._

_"Lightpelt!"_

_"I'm sorry, but you aren't ready to become leader, my daughter."_

_"Do not interfere with your daughters destiny, Lightpelt." Barkfeather stepped up from behind Ravenflower, and her fathers eyes were filled with mock surprise._

_"Why hello, Barkfeather, why don't you go tell signs, this cat can forge her own path!" That last part came out as a snarl from the toms mouth._

_"It is too late for you to interfere. If you had not been chosen to go on the patrol, you would have killed your daughter already." Barkfeather unsheathed his claws."You are not worthy of the stars! We are just deep enough into the Dark Forest that we can see you!" He turned, and ran._

_Ravenflower could only run as her father chased her, and she skidded into a forest with beams of moonlight._

_"Come on! Before it is too late!" Barkfeather called to her, and they stopped in a clearing, with the stars shining around it, and the eyes of the long dead looked at them with worry._

_Ravenflower stood in the middle of the clearing, her head low._

_"Ravenflower." Ravenflower lifted her head to see a ginger and black she-cat standing before her._

_"My name is Tawnypelt. With this life I give you loyalty to all clans, when you must unite." She touched her nose to Ravenflowers, and a fire seemed to burn through her, leaving her gasping for breath._

_A dark brown tabby tom stepped forward, and had to bend over a bit before he could give her a life. _

_"My name is Bramblestar. With this life I give you belief in what is right." He touched his nose to hers, and an icy shock ran through her, warming as it went through her._

_A huge white tom with black paws stepped forward. _

_"My name is Blackstar." He said. "With this life I give you strength, may you use it in the darkest of times." It seemed as if a bolt of lightning shot through her, leaving her gasping for breath._

_A small black and white tom stepped forward.  
_

_"My name is Runningnose. With this life I give you trust, may you let it overcome doubt always." He touched his nose to hers, and a warm flush seemed to go through her._

_A slender white she-cat stepped forward._

_"My name is Snowbird. With this life I give you love for your clan as a mother loves her kits." She touched her nose Ravenflowers, and a jarring pain shot though her._

_A dark brown tabby tom stepped forward._

_"My name is Tigerheart. With this life I give you the will to fight." He touched his nose to hers, and a bolt of lightning seemed to go through her, yet it left her stronger then she had been._

_A small ginger tom stepped forward._

_"My name is Flametail. With this life I give you hope." He touched his nose to hers, and she was running in a dark tunnel, but a light shone at the end._

_A slender silver she-cat stepped forward._

_"My name is Silverstream. With this life I give you love." She touched her nose to Ravenflowers, and a warm light spread through her, yet it ended with a sharp jolt of pain._

_A gray and white she-cat stepped forward._

_"My name is Ivypool. With this life I give you courage." She touched her nose to Ravenflowers, and a burning feeling came through her, making her grit her teeth._

_"Then I hail you by your new name, Ravenstar!" Ivypool said, and then Ravenstar recognized her._

_"Ravenstar! Ravenstar! Ravenstar!" The ranks of StarClan called._

_Just then, the cats began to fade, and a single ray of sunlight blinded her for a moment, and she opened her eyes._

"Ravenstar. It is time to return." Barkfeather told the young leader, and they stood.

**So...I honestly have no clue where Hailstar is. So...poll time!**


	14. Ex hoc nunc, et usque in

**Sorry that the chapter wasn't very quick! This is pretty important too.**

She walked with a leaf in her jaws.

She strolled into the nursery.

She walked out.

She smirked as a short cry abruptly shot off sounded.

She slid into a small bush before anyone saw her.

* * *

Ravenstar walked swiftly towards camp, the leaves were tossed up with every step, and a chill wind blew her fur back.

"Ravenstar, stop walking so fast." Barkfeather mewed from behind her, his voice just as stern as it had been when she was a kit breaking a small rule.

"Sorry." Ravenstar said quickly, slowing her pace.

Just then, a yowl of grief echoed through the forest around ShadowClan camp.

The two cats exchanged a glance, and both ran as fast as they could towards camp.

* * *

"Ravenstar! Barkfeather! Flowertail and Wolfkit were killed!" Sparrowpaw mewed, her eyes wide. "But who killed them, I wonder."

"I don't know." Ravenstar said grimly, missing the slight smile that played at the edge of that small mouth.

In a few minutes, Barkfeather came out carrying Flowertail in his jaws, and Sparrowpaw was carrying Wolfkit.

Ravenstar stood, dumbfounded.

Flowertail's open eyes, glazed over with the look of death, were filled with an agonizing pain.

Wolfkit's throat was torn open, her black and white fur stained dark red.

* * *

Streampaw sat, staring at Ravenstar.

_These clan ways. They are confusing indeed. Day before yesterday, she was a mere apprentice, but now she is leader._

_How? Why? How is she so tall? Why did Snowstar make these ways?_

* * *

Ravenstar looked at the rising sun, just after Flowertail and Wolfkit had been buried.

She jumped up on the ledge, and opened her jaws in a yowl unfamiliar to her, as it had not been used since the reign of Cherrystar.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here beneath the high-branch for a clan meeting!" She yowled, and cats walked out of the den.

She waited until she saw the cat she wanted to be deputy.

"I, Ravenstar, leader of ShadowClan, say these words before our fading ancestors, so they may hear and approve my choice of deputy." She began, making her own words, as there was no leaders body in camp anymore.

"Brackenfoot will be the new deputy pf ShadowClan."

Brackenfoot stepped forward, looking shocked.

"T-thank you, Ravenstar." The older warrior said, dipping her head.

Ravenstar then jumped down from the branch, and her gaze roved over the crowd of cats until she saw whom she was looking for.

"Streampaw. Birchpaw. Come forward." She said to the two apprentices.

The two friends stepped forward, their eyes shining with joy.

"Streampaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and defend our clan, even at the cost of your life?" Ravenstar said the familiar words.

"I do." Streampaw said, gulping.

"Then from this moment onward, you will be known as Streamheart, StarClan honors your kindness and loyalty, and we welcome you as a true warrior of ShadowClan." Ravenstar finished, then turned, and gestured with her tail to Birchpaw.

"Birchpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code, and defend your clan, even at the cost of your life?" Ravenstar said again.

"I do."

"Then from this moment onward, you will be known as Birchflight. StarClan honors your courage and loyalty, and we welcome you as a true warrior of ShadowClan." Ravenstar finished.

"Birchflight! Streamheart! Birchflight! Streamheart! The clan cheered, but Sparrowpaw was the loudest.

_I'm glad I was able to do this, despite the clans sorrow. _Ravenstar thought, a faint smile on her face.

* * *

Birchflight looked up at the stars, they seemed to reflect clan life in every way, even the way they shone.

_Its a wonderful world. But the clans don't enjoy it._

_Why?_


End file.
